True Army Worm Alfalfa Looper 



The most characteristic marking is the white spot near the center of each 

 fore wing. The last part of the army worm's Latin name, " unipuncta," 

 is derived from this spot and means one point. 



LIFE HISTORY 



So far as known, the army worm passes the winter, in the north- 

 ern half of the United States, as a partially grown worm or larva. 

 The first moths appear during May or June, depending upon the season 

 and the locality. The cooler the season and the farther north we go the 

 later they appear. 



The eggs are laid soon after the moths emerge, and the young worms 

 appear during June. These feed for about three weeks and then change 

 to pupae, in which form they remain from eight to eleven or twelve days, 

 when the adult moths come forth. 



The second brood is in the egg stage about the middle of July, in the 

 worm stage during the latter part of July and early August, in the pupal 

 stage during the latter part of August, and the moths issue between the 

 the last of August and the 8th or 10th of September. 



The third brood of worms hatches during the latter part of Septem- 

 ber and early October. These worms spend the winter as partially 

 grown larvae and complete their development the next April. 



In the southern part of the country a fourth generation may occur. 



NATURAL ENEMIES 

 Parasitic Flies 



Several species of parasitic flies destroy the army worm. Two 

 species, "Archytus apicifere Walk" and a "Winthemia"* -species (near 

 militaris Walsh) have been bred from parasitized army worms taken 

 in Boulder County, Colorado. 



Birds 



Birds, especially blackbirds, meadow larks and other ground feeding 

 species, render valuable service in destroying these worms. 



Ground Beetles 



Ground beetles and their larvae also devour large numbers of army 

 worms. 



(c) ALFALFA LOOPER 

 (Figs. 5, 6, 7 and 8, Plate VI, Page 21) 



The first authentic record of this insect as a crop pest** states that 

 during June, 1895, considerable damage was done to alfalfa near Grand 

 Junction, Colorado, by the caterpillars. Again in 1914 reports of injury 

 by this insect came from the same locality. The same year the looper 

 also appeared in large numbers in the Yellowstone Valley in Montana 

 and in adjoining territories, where considerable damage was done to both 

 alfalfa and sugar beets. The latter were damaged only in those instances 

 where the worms migrated from alfalfa fields or the sweet clover growing 

 on waste land. 



Determined by C. H. T Townsend. 



**J. A. Hyslop.""The Alfalfa Looper." Bulletin No. 95. Part VII. Bureau of Entomology. U. S. 

 Department of Agriculture (1912). 



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